


Abomination

by SkorpiaMynx



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: 100 Year War (Avatar TV), Bisexual Zuko (Avatar), F/M, M/M, Panic Attacks, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Seasickness, Separation Anxiety, Sibling Rivalry, Violence, Vomiting, Zuko helps, jet and boats do not get along, sick Jet
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-24
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-17 03:08:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,435
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28967346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SkorpiaMynx/pseuds/SkorpiaMynx
Summary: What if Jet had a little sister with a big secret?
Relationships: Jet/Zuko (Avatar)
Kudos: 4





	1. The Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> I posted this once before and then, upon rereading it like 2 years later decided to change pretty much everything about it.  
> Tags will be updated as the story progresses.

Astoria chuckles quietly, slicing up an apple she swiped from the market early that morning.  
Underneath the tree she sits in, a trio bickers amusingly, completely unaware of their audience.  
The smallest, a boy with blue arrows on his head and hands, sits on the head of a massive animal with matching marks on his fur. He lets the other two, a pair of water tribe siblings, do most of the arguing, only stepping in when the eldest insults the animal, who lets out a short roar in offense.  
“Who made you the boss?” the girl asks, crossing her arms.  
“I’m not the boss, I’m the leader,” the eldest responded, holding his head high.  
She snorts, “You’re the leader? But your voice still cracks!”  
The boy turns bright red. “I’m the oldest,” he croaks, “and I’m a warrior so,” he clears his throat and straightens up, fists on his hips, “I’m the leader!”  
“If anyone’s the leader, it’s Aang. I mean he is the Avatar.”  
This makes Astoria sit up right, tossing her apple aside carelessly. It falls to the ground with a thud. The trio look toward where the sound came from but shrug it off. She kneels up on the tree branch. Years go hiding let her easily balance on the edge. Wide eyed, she stares down at the kids – at the Avatar. He certainly doesn’t behave like a leader.  
“Look,” the eldest, Sokka, she remembered from earlier when the Avatar had accused him of being jealous because he didn’t have an arrow on his head, speaks again, “my instincts tell me we have a better chance of slipping through on foot and a leader has to trust his instincts.”  
His sister sighs, waving her hands lazily, “Okay, we’ll try it your way, oh wise leader.”  
Astoria walks easily from branch to branch, keeping stride with the animal that brings up the rear of their group. His footsteps echo in the trees and make the ground shake slightly.  
“Walking stinks!” The Avatar exclaims not long after they’d left their camp site. “How do people go anywhere without a flying bison?”  
Astoria freezes momentarily as the path becomes more familiar. They’re walking right into the Fire Nation troop Jet has targeted for today’s mission.  
Swinging up to a higher branch, she starts running, latching onto branch after branch. She has to get to Jet before they do – she has to warn him.  
“The important thing is that we’re safe from the…” Sokka trails off, pushing aside some brush, revealing the Fire Nation troop in all their glory. “...Fire Nation…”  
The Fire Nation soldiers stand up together, setting side their supper in favor of focusing on the intruders.  
“Run!” Sokka cries.  
Dropping their packs, they turn to run but were cut off as one of the soldiers set the bush behind them on fire.  
“We’re trapped!”  
“Sokka! Your shirt!” the girl exclaims.  
Sokka screams, waving his arm around wildly. The girl pulls water from the pack hanging at her side, dousing the flames with a flick of her wrist.  
The soldiers crown around them, looking murderous.  
“If you let us pass, we promise not to hurt you!” Sokka negotiated.  
The soldier in front of him laughed dryly, “You promise not to hurt us?”  
Before anyone can say anything else, a dart lodges in the back of the man’s neck. The reaction is immediate, causing him to drop to his knees before falling unconscious.  
“Look!” the girl points to a tree on the other side of the clearing.  
Astoria follows her direction. Her brother stands on a branch, his hooked swords hanging ready at his sides. He swings from the branch, using the swords to guide his movement.  
He slams all of his weight into the backs of two more soldiers, knocking them to the ground. No time is wasted before he hooks the ankle of another set, flinging himself and them in a circle until the face plant hard.  
“Down you go.”  
Astoria settles on a branch, resting her chin on her hand. All the moves are the same – she’s seen Jet and his most loyal Freedom Fighters perform the same take downs too many times to count. She watches with a bored expression as they take out almost every soldier like it’s nothing, barely leaving them time to get their bearings and clear their head enough to fight back.  
The benders take a few out while Sokka struggles to get close enough to even just one before Jet steals the show.  
Once all the soldiers are incapacitated, Jet rushes toward the girl, his too familiar flirtatious smirk painted on his lips. “Hey.”  
“Hi,” she answers, big blue eyes wide in awe. Astoria has to resist the urge to gag.  
Sokka sulks to the side, turning his head stubbornly when Aang praises the Fighters for their work.  
The others fall into their rolls, digging through the troop’s belongings. Jet leans against the trunk of the tree Astoria sits in, overseeing the process. Exhaling heavily, he turns his head up, locking eyes with Astoria. He smiles minutely and shakes his head, telling her to stay where she is.  
Katara approaches Jet, hands clasped behind her back. “Thanks for saving us Jet.”  
“I should be thanking you. We were waiting to ambush those guys all day. You guys were a good distraction.”  
Pipsqueak and The Duke call out their findings to Jet. He applauds them and tells them to take it back to the hideout.  
Katara’s and Aang’s eyes sparkle. “You guys have a hideout?”  
Jet smirks, “You wanna see it?”  
Katara should learn some self-control, you’d think she’s never met a boy before. She leans too close to Jet – so close that if it were anyone else he would have punched them in the gut by now. “Yes we wanna see it!”  
Avatar or not, Astoria can’t shake the bad feeling settling in her stomach. She stays close by, even as Jet makes almost unnoticeable movements telling her to back off.  
He tells Katara Longshot and The Duke’s stories when she asks if they all live here. Her face falls sympathetically.  
Astoria freezes and so does Jet. It takes him a second to school his features. He looks down, avoiding Katara’s prying eyes. “The Fire Nation killed my parents. I was only eight years old.”  
Astoria was only 3.  
“That day changed me forever.”  
Jet looks up, finding his sister watching him. He can’t quite get a grip on the pain that flashes across his face. Luckily, Katara isn’t looking at him.  
“Sokka and I lost our mother to the Fire Nation.”  
Against every instinct coursing through her veins, Astoria’s heart clenches in sympathy and pain.  
“I’m so sorry, Katara,” she hears Jet say as she abandons them.

Astoria pushes through the bustling Fighters silently, always keeping an eye out for the newcomers, heading to her brother’s tent.  
The way Sokka looks at Jet – the way it’s more than jealousy alone, leaning towards complete mistrust, irks her. They have to leave soon, or things are going to get bad for everyone involved.  
She doesn’t know how long she sits on Jet’s bed for, twirling with her dagger in her hands before the flap of the tent opens.  
But it isn’t Jet that walks in.  
Smellerbee looks relieved to see Astoria there, visibly relaxing. She lets the flap close behind her, dropping down beside the other warrior on the floor in front of the hammock bed.  
“Did you see them?” she asks quietly. Astoria nods. “I don’t trust them.”  
“Me either. The big one’s asking for trouble.”  
Smellerbee nods in agreement, looking down at her hands. “You gonna talk to him?”  
Astoria shrugs, “I doubt he’ll listen. With the waterbender girl and the Avatar, he can fill the reservoir and go through with the plan. After that, I don’t know.”  
Smellerbee’s eyes widened.  
“Oh,” Astoria sounds much too calm for what she just unveiled, if you didn’t know her like Smellerbee does, you’d find it unnerving (or more so, anyway). “Have they not mentioned that yet?” Jaw hanging open, Smellerbee shakes her head. “Well, I’m sure it’ll come up eventually.”  
The flap opens again, this time revealing Jet standing with one hand on his hip. “Having a sleepover? My invitation must’ve gotten lost.”  
As to not upset him more, Smellerbee leaves quickly, glancing back at Astoria just before the flap closes.  
Jet gives her a small smile as she passes him. Once she’s gone, he turns back to his sister. “Yes, Stori?”  
She steels her shoulders, sitting up more. He’ll never see her as more than his baby sister, but she can certainly try to look respectable. “Be careful around the newbies.”  
He chuckles lightly, dismissively. “You haven’t even met them yet. Don’t’ judge so quickly.”  
Her eyebrows raise, a challenge. “Are you saying I can meet them?”  
His smirk drops instantly, regret filling his eyes. “Stori, you know that… If anyone ever…” She falls back against the wall, crossing her arms, dagger held out to the side, glinting. “We’ll see.”  
She nods, “Sure. But still,” she frowns. “Be careful. I don’t trust them.”  
“You don’t trust anyone.”  
“Neither do you. Or at least you didn’t used to.  
“The little one is the Avatar.” Jet’s eyes light up. “And wherever he goes, the Fire Nation will be one step behind. This won’t end well, Jet.”  
“I’ll bring you dinner later,” he mutters, leaving.

Jet made no indication of knowing she was present at the feast – despite his indirect order to stay put. Still, she had no doubt he knows she’s there and has no doubt that she’ll hear about it later.  
“Today, we struck another blow against the Fire Nation swine.” Cheers erupt from the Freedom Fighters at Jet’s words. “I got a special joy from the look on one soldier’s face when The Duke dropped down on his helmet and rode him like a wild hog monkey.”  
Astoria can’t help but smile as The Duke does a victory lap around the table.  
“Now, the Fire Nation thinks they don’t have to worry about a couple of kids hiding in the trees. Maybe they’re right.” Jet hides his mouth behind his cup but doesn’t drink any.  
The crowd boos loudly, their combined voices echoing in the night.  
“Or maybe they’re dead wrong.”  
As they cheer again, Jet takes a seat next to Katara and Sokka, dividing the siblings.  
Astoria drops down to the platform their seated on, hiding in the shadows like she’s practiced for years.  
“Avatar, huh? Very nice.” Astoria can hear her brother’s devilish smirk in his words. “I think I know a way you and Aang can help in our struggle.”  
“Unfortunately, we have to leave tonight,” Sokka says. He gets up, making to abandon the feast. Astoria’s heart lurches into her throat.  
“Sokka!” Jet calls after the wanna-be warrior. “You’re kidding me! I needed you on an important mission tomorrow.”  
“What mission?” Sokka asks, intrigued and suspicious.

A hand clamps down on Astoria’s shoulder at the flap to Jet’s tent.  
He glares down at her, “You almost got caught! Now I’m stuck with Sokka tomorrow!”  
“Maybe,” she backs out of his hold, matching his stare, “if you stopped hiding me like a dirty little secret, you wouldn’t have to worry about it!”  
He tries not to let it show how the bite in her words hurts him. He pushes her inside the tent.  
“Why can’t you just listen to me for once, Stori?” he drops his voice to a whisper. “I’m trying to look out for you.”  
“We both know I’m more than capable of taking care of myself.”  
“You’re my sister, you’re my responsibility.”  
“You’re my brother. And I’m just looking out for you.”  
He looks down, rubbing a hand across his face roughly. “If anyone found out about … you, you’d be killed. Or at least imprisoned. I can’t let that happen.”  
“Or,” she interjects, “someone would see me as a weapon and steal me away from you.”  
And maybe I’d be better off with them.


	2. The Betrayal

Astoria rarely sees any action on any missions. She’s only there to step in if things go way south and they need backup. She stands against the trunk of a tree to the left of the one Sokka and Jet are perched on. They’ve been here for almost an hour and nothing has happened. She should’ve left this one to Smellerbee and spied on the sister and Avatar instead.  
Sokka stabs his knife into the tree, cupping his hands around the hilt and putting his ear against them.  
“What’re you doing?” Jet whisper-shouts up at him.  
“It amplifies vibrations,” Sokka whispers back. “Someone’s coming.”  
Astoria cuts off a yawn and gets into a better position, kneeling with one hand planted firmly on the branch.  
An old Fire Nation man emerges from the edge of the path, hobbling with a walking stick.  
Astoria almost wants to say something to stop Sokka from getting in Jet’s way but she’s more interested in seeing it play out. Jet jumps down from his perch, landing perfectly in front of the old man.  
“What are you doing in our woods, you leech?” Jet spits at the man.  
“Please, sir,” the man begs, “I’m just a traveler.” He takes a cautious step back.  
Swinging one sword out, Jet knocks the cane from the man’s grasp. He tries to get away and slams into Pipsqueak’s chest. He falls in a heap to the ground. Astoria shakes her head in pity.  
The fighters surround him, Pipsqueak pinning him to the ground with a foot pressing hard on his back. Jet continues spitting insults at the man, crouching until they’re eye-to-eye.  
“Please,” the man croaks, gasping for breath. “Let me go. Have mercy.”  
Oh, you poor, stupid man, she thinks.  
“Does the Fire Nation let people go?” Jet shouts. “Does the Fire Nation have mercy?”  
Jet reels one leg back, preparing to deliver a blinding kick to the man, but Sokka hooks his foot. He sways, almost losing his balance.  
Astoria all but gasps at the boy’s boldness.  
“Jet, he’s just an old man!”  
The look Jet gives Sokka could kill. “He’s Fire Nation! Search him!”  
Smellerbee and Pipsqueak follow his order obediently.  
Jet stands firm while Sokka argues. He straightens up to his full height, towering over Sokka.  
“We got his stuff, Jet,” Smellerbee interrupts before Sokka can say anything else.  
They leave the man on the ground, helplessly rubbing his head. Sokka spares him a glance but follows the other reluctantly.  
Astoria climbs down a few branches. The man looks up at her. Panic and years of fighting instincts rush through her veins. He looks so … pitiful.  
She finds his cane easily. It’s miraculously still in one piece. She helps him up carefully, steadying him on the cane.  
“Thank you,” he’s still a bit breathless. Then his eyebrows furrow. “You have very … unique eyes.”  
She smiles, blushing. “Thank you.”  
She’s disappeared behind the trees before eh fully realizes she started moving.

Jet is laying back on his bed, one hand on his belly, and his eyes closed, when she arrives. “Took you long enough.”  
“I was helping the old man.” His eyes fly open and narrow warningly. “I told you to be careful.”  
“You don’t listen to me. Why should I listen to you?”  
She sits beside the bed calmly. “Because, unlike you, I’m out there every single day. I hear everyone’s conversations. I see everything that goes on inside and outside of the hideout. If it weren’t for me, you’d be lost in the dark most of the time. You isolate yourself from the rest of the world.  
“I know why the Avatar is here. And I know that there is no way this ends well.”  
He sits up, back against the supported wall of the tent. The scowl he gives her would’ve sent any other Freedom Fighter running.  
Astoria just sits up straighter. “The little show you put on for Sokka today will cost you control of the waterbender and the Avatar. I hope you realize that.”  
He opens his mouth to say something, but footsteps approach outside the door.  
Astoria slips out under the gap between the floorboards and tent wall. She leans against the trunk to listen.  
“Sokka,” Astoria cringes at Jet’s disappointed leader (brother) voice, “you told them what happened but you didn’t mention that the guy was Fire Nation?”  
“No, he conveniently left that part out,” Katara answers.  
“Fine! But even if he was Fire Nation, he was a harmless civilian!”  
“He was an assassin Sokka.” A sharp thud punctuates Jet’s words. “See? There’s a compartment for poison in the knife.”  
Astoria’s jaw drops open.  
“He was sent to eliminate me. You helped save my life, Sokka.”  
You can hear Katara’s smile when she speaks again, “I knew there was an explanation.”  
“I didn’t see any knife!” Sokka argues.  
“That’s because he was concealing it.”  
Astoria is very familiar with Jet’s tricks and his weapons collection – most of which he has obtained from combatting Fire Nation troops and citizens over the years. Two years ago, he stumbled upon a man not much older than himself carrying a knife just like the one he’s describing.  
“There was no knife!” Sokka sighs heavily. “I’m going back to the hut and packing my things.”  
Jet begins speaking to the other two, but Astoria doesn’t stick around, heading out in search of Smellerbee.

Jet’s second-in-command is sharpening her knives and overseeing some of the newer recruits in training when Astoria finds her. The new recruits are packing up crates and barrels.  
“You have to talk Jet out of this,” she sits next to the other girl. Smellerbee jumps, dropping one of her knives. “If you go through with this, it will end bad. They seem nice but they cannot be trusted.”  
“It’s too late, Astoria. Jet gave us orders to get everything ready to set up tonight. We’re going through with the plan tomorrow.”  
Astoria shakes her head. “That nosy Water Tribe boy is going to get in the way and screw everything up. You have to call it off!”  
“We both know that’s not my place to say.”  
Astoria clenches her jaw. “This makes you all just as bad as the Fire Nation.”  
Smellerbee turns on her. Before Astoria realizes what’s happening, she’s flat on her back with one of Smellerbee’s knives pressed lightly against her throat, the smaller girl’s legs straddling her hips. Surprised or not, Astoria does not look the least bit afraid. No matter how much they fight, Jet would never let anyone get away with hurting Astoria.  
“What? Are you a traitor now? You know better than anyone how Jet feels about traitors.”  
It’s easy to push away the knife and shove Smellerbee off her. “Yeah. I know.”  
She doesn’t bother climbing back up into the trees. She doesn’t – never did – care about who sees her. A few of the Fighters she passes give her momentary strange looks. Lucky for her though, Jet and Smellerbee are always taking in new strays.

Astoria watches from the opposite bank of the reservoir as Jet gives instructions to the Freedom Fighters entrusted in carrying out the plan.  
The bushes behind them rustle, sending Smellerbee and Pipsqueak barreling into them. They emerge a moment later, dragging Sokka by his ponytail, throwing on his knees between them. They throw him down in front of Jet, Smellerbee holding a jagged edged dagger at his throat.  
From so far away, she can’t make out what is said. Sokka glares at Jet, pointing an accusatory finger at him. Jet remains calm, standing tall and firm.  
Pipsqueak and Smellerbee seize Sokka and Jet hooks his swords around Sokka’s free wrist. Jet waves them off, and Sokka is dragged back into the woods.

Smellerbee shoves Sokka along, annoyed with his slow pace, “C’mon, move along!”  
“How can you stand by and do nothing while Jet wipes out a whole village?”  
“Hey, listen, Sokka. Jet’s a great leader,” Pipsqueak argues. “We follow what he say, and things always turn out okay.”  
Sokka looks to his side. Following his gaze, Astoria raises an eyebrow at the too-perfect leaf piles on the forest floor.  
“If that’s how Jet leads, then he’s got a lot to learn.” Sokka runs off toward the leaf piles.  
Failing to catch him, Smellerbee and Pipsqueak chase after him. Sokka leaps over the leaf piles. Pipsqueak and Smellerbee don’t catch on and step right in the center, deploying snares and flying up to hang from the trees, locked in cages.  
“While you two are up there, you might want to practice your knot work.” Sokka turns and walks away.  
Looking back at her comrades, Astoria smirks and hurries after Sokka.  
Once Sokka fully steps out of view of the Fighters, Astoria drops down in front of him. Startled, he stumbles back, throwing his hands up as defense.  
“Calm down,” Astoria almost laughs, holding her hands up. “I just wanna talk.”  
Sokka raises an eyebrow in suspicion but relaxes. “Are you one of them? A Freedom Fighter?”  
“Yes.” Sokka tenses again, his hand inching to grab his weapons. “But I am not blindly loyal to Jet. I know his flaws and all of his messed-up tactics. I support Jet in his ultimate goal, but I don’t agree with how he’s going about getting what he wants.”  
“So, why’re you telling me this?”  
“We only have a few hours before they blow the dam and that whole village gets wiped out. Do you wanna help me get the civilians out in time or not?”  
Sokka’s eyes widen in surprise. “But, if you’re one of Jet’s…”  
“I’ve been a Freedom Fighter longer than anyone. I guess you could say I was the first. I’ve seen Jet at his lowest points. I’ve seen the worst things he’s done, things he doesn’t want anyone to know about but this … I’ve never seen anything like this.”  
Sokka nods, “Let’s go.”  
Astoria grabs his wrist, pulling him off a hidden side trail through the woods leading toward the village.  
Following without objection, Sokka found his eyes trailing to where she held his wrist, eyebrows knitting together at the odd warmth she emits.  
He doesn’t have time to question it before they came to the edge of a short, slanted cliff. Below are two small, poorly built houses.  
Astoria pulls him to sit on the grass, letting go of his hand, “Be careful.”  
She pushes herself down, sliding carefully, slowly down the slant. Sokka follows suit but goes too quickly and when he went over a particularly smooth bit, he loses control and rolls to the bottom, landing face first in someone’s backyard.  
Astoria laughs, standing and dusting herself off. She holds a hand out to help him up, the most kindness anyone had shown him since their arrival.  
“Before we do this, there’s something I need to ask you.” Sokka nods frantically, looking around for Fire Nation soldiers. “No one is supposed to know about me. Jet doesn’t want anyone seeing me.” Sokka looks back down at her, confused. “After we free the civilians, I have to leave, and you have to face Jet alone. I’m sorry, I really wish I could help you, but my presence would only anger him more. Please, don’t tell him I helped you.” Her eyes, both strange and brilliant at the same time, plead with him louder than she can muster into words.  
He gives her a single nod, “I won’t.”  
Astoria, relieved and trusting his response, intertwines their fingers. They weave through the small passages between houses and small shops to the center of village. More than a few people, most of them children, look at Astoria with joy and recognition. She gestures for them to follow her, which they all do without hesitation.  
“You guys have to leave!” Astoria wastes no time after reaching the center of the village. “You’re all in danger!”  
“The dam is about to be blown up!” Sokka jumps in. “The village will flood and if you don’t leave, you’ll all be killed!”  
Everyone’s eyes widen. Murmurs of shock and disbelief rang through the crowd. Astoria looked toward the dam not far off, chewing on her bottom lip anxiously. Fire Nation soldiers at the back of the crowd watch her closely.  
“Please, you have to believe us!” She locks eyes with a young girl, who stares at her with trusting and fear filled eyes. “Some of you know me and I would never lie to you! We’re trying to help you!”  
Someone pushes through the crowd, muttering apologies as he hobbles past others. “I believe them!” the old man Jet had attacked calls out. “There is a crazed boy in those woods who attacked me yesterday! This young man tried to stop him, and this girl helped me once they were gone. We can trust them.” He looks back toward his fellow Fire Nation men. “We can all trust them. We must leave now!”  
The crowd all look at one another, one by one nodding in agreement. Then they turn back to the teens standing before them, nodding simultaneously again.  
“Take only what you can carry, there isn’t much time!” Astoria barks.  
Everyone disperses, rushing toward their homes and shops to gather their belongings. Pleased with the response, Astoria runs to the edge of the village, leaving Sokka to rush to catch up. She bolts up a tall incline, while Sokka nearly trips behind her, digging his club and boomerang into the Earth to pull himself up. Astoria helps him up the rest of the way. She leads him over to a large, fallen tree branch. It’s surprisingly light and together they push it out of the way, opening up a pathway.  
“Jet doesn’t know this path; he won’t come looking here. They’ll be safe and it leads to the next village, it’s only a few miles away. Plus, the water won’t make it over the edge.”  
Breathing heavily from the climb and adrenaline, Sokka smiles. Together, hand in hand this time to keep themselves (Sokka) steady, they race back toward the village center. Sokka feels the warmth again and starts to see it as a reassurance. Without realizing it, he tightens his grip.  
“Follow us! We’ll take you to a path that leads to the closest village!” Astoria shouts over the bustling of the crowd.  
Sokka stays behind, making sure everyone gets out.  
A bird call rings through the air, the same one Sokka had heard Jet and the others using to communicate before they attacked the old man.  
Astoria and Sokka lock eyes but neither gets a word out before another call - Jet’s - answers back.  
“Run!”  
Everyone, mothers, fathers, children, even the old, ran as fast as they can toward Astoria. She practically drags them up the slope, shoving them into the covering of the trees.  
Sokka lifts the last little girl high above his head, handing her to Astoria. The girl runs to hug her mother’s legs tightly.  
“Get as far away as possible! We’ll come back. I promise!” Astoria tells them.  
She pulls Sokka up a second before the dam explodes and waves cascade over the village, crushing the houses in its wake.  
Astoria doesn’t say anything, grabbing Sokka’s hand again. They run along the edge of the cliff, watching the water splash against the soft earth. The ground starts crumbling under their feet.  
“You have to get to the cliff! Your sister and Aang are there. If Jet…”  
Sokka stops her, stops dead in his tracks, pulling her to a halt next to him. “Come with us, you’ll be safe!”  
She shakes her head, “I can’t! Just go!”  
He squeezes her hand, pulling her in for a fleeting hug. “Thank you.”  
Astoria is too stunned to say or do anything as he pulls away and sprints back to the hideout.

“This was a victory, Katara,” Jet talks to the waterbender like she’s a child. “Remember that. The Fire Nation is gone, and this valley will be safe.”  
Appa rises to the height of the cliff, Sokka sitting at the reigns. Sokka can’t help but smirk at the sight of Jet frozen to the base of a tree, defeated. “It will be safe. Without you.”  
Jet’s jaw nearly drops at the sight of the warrior. “Sokka!” he gasps.  
“I warned the villagers of your plan, just in time.”  
“What?!”  
Sokka looks back toward the now flooded village, smiling in relief and thinking of the mystery rogue Freedom Fighter girl. “At first they didn’t believe me. But one man vouched for me. The old man you attacked. He urged them to trust me and we got everyone out in time.”  
“Sokka, you fool!” Jet spits uselessly, glaring. “We could’ve freed this valley!”  
“Who would be free? Everyone would be dead.”  
“You traitor!”  
Sokka shakes his head sadly, “No, Jet. You became the traitor when you stopped protecting innocent people.”  
Jet looks to plead with Katara, “Katara, please, help me.”  
Katara turns her back on him, her head help up proudly. “Goodbye Jet.”

Astoria sees the villagers - and Fire Nation troops - into the next village, where they were met with little adversary once their story is told.  
The adrenaline fades while she walks the same path she send Sokka on. Soon, her head feels like it’s swimming and she starts shaking.  
A few hours earlier, she had watched the Avatar’s bison fly overhead and had waved goodbye to it, thankful that they had gotten away safely.  
The forest is alarmingly quiet, the ground wet from the overflow of the river water but she doesn’t mind.  
Sokka’s promise of keeping her involvement a secret had seemed sincere enough but if there was one thing she had learned from her brother it was not to trust anyone too much.  
Halfway back to the hideout, she remembers Pipsqueak and Smellerbee. Smirking and shaking her head, she leaves the path to go find them.  
They are indeed still stuck, swinging uselessly from the branches, hoping to crack the snare against a tree or each other to get free.  
Pipsqueak squirms uncomfortably, chewing on his bottom lip and squeezing his legs together.  
“Hey, you two” Astoria greets them calmly, smiling up at them, her hands on her hips. The sight makes her relax and the shaking, swimming feeling stops.  
“Astoria! Please! Get us down!” Pipsqueak begs, gripping the bars with white knuckles.  
She takes her sweet time climbing the tree - Pipsqueaks first. When she reaches the branch the snare was hooked on, she pulls out a knife holding it up to the rope. “Ready?” She doesn’t wait for an answer, cutting the rope in one swift movement.  
Pipsqueak plummets to the ground, groaning loudly as the cage breaks apart on impact. He races off into the covering of a tree.  
Astoria pauses over Smellerbee’s trap, sitting with her legs dangling over the branch. Smellerbee stubbornly stared up at her, scowling. “I can wait,” Astoria teases, making to put away the knife.  
Smellerbee huffs, “I’m sorry. We should’ve listened to you.”  
Pleased, Astoria cuts the rope.  
She lands with expert ease and grace in front of the Fighters. “Let’s go home. And hope we never see them again.”  
They start walking, only getting a few steps away from the traps before another bird call rang through the air. The human tone of it makes all their heads shoot up but only Astoria knows it. Without a word to the others, she races off in the direction it came from.


	3. The Consequences

Jet’s teeth chatter loudly. His whole body would be shivering violently if the ice would allow that much movement. It’s taking it’s sweet time melting. The cool autumn air does nothing to help it along. He keeps his eyes closed, trying to keep calm, breathing shallowly.  
Astoria gasps, scrambling to a stop at the tree line. A hand flies to her mouth in shock. Jet looks up at the sound.  
“How … how long have you been here?”  
She braces one hand on the tree by Jet’s head and pounds the butt of her dagger’s handle against the ice above Jet’s shoulder. The melted ice makes the handle slippery. The blade nearly hits Jet’s cheek. He pulls away hastily.  
“Sorry, sorry!” She grunts, dropping the dagger. “Jet, this is gonna take forever. There’s a much easier way. Can’t I just…”  
Turning his head away from her, Jet clenches his chattering teeth so hard the muscles in his jaw bulge.  
“I’ll be careful, I promise. Please, Jet.”  
He’s been here since the Avatar Gang left. Most of the damage was already done. At this point, he’ll be lucky to keep all his fingers.  
When Jet doesn’t object, she decides for him. “Tell me if I hurt you. I’ll stop right away.”  
Her hands hover a few inches from the ice encasing his left arm. In just a few seconds, water runs down his arm, dripping off his miraculously still pink fingers. She does the same to the other arm. Jet flexes his fingers, pain stinging along his nerves. He jerks forward, breaking through the rest of the ice on his chest.  
“My … my s-swords,” he rasps, nodding at the discarded weapons a few feet away.  
Astoria reluctantly hands them over. He chips through the ice on his legs, barely managing to not stab himself with the sharp little piece on the back end of the handles with how badly his hands tremble.  
The second he’s fully free, he collapses forward, bringing Astoria down with him. He is cold to the touch, sending shivers through Astoria as she gets a better hold on him. For the first time ever, he lets her hold him, clinging to her warmth for all he’s worth. His head rest against her shoulders, his eyes shut lightly. “Thank … thank y-you,” he exhales, stuttering.

It’s pitch black by the time they make it back to the hideout. Astoria supports nearly all of his weight. Some time ago, he’d begun coughing so harshly that she has to adjust her hold on him every few minutes. He has one arm over Astoria’s shoulders, his hand clutched in hers, and the other wrapped around his midsection.  
Thunder ripples overhead. Astoria curses mentally.  
“Hold on,” she tells him calmly. She maneuvers him to the ground and sits beside him. He’s over a foot taller than her and the walk has taken considerably longer than usual. Storm or no storm, she needs a break.  
“Stori,” Jet groans, his knees drawing up to his chest, “I feel sick.”  
“I know, I’m sorry. I should’ve found you sooner.”  
“It’s okay. I-I should’ve called for help sooner. And…” His face contorts and he doubles over, coughing violently. Astoria hesitates but rubs his back gently.  
“I should’ve listened to you,” he continues when the fit ends. “I shouldn’t have gone through with the plan. And…”  
“Shh,” she soothes, leaning against his shoulder. “It’s okay. It’s over now.”  
They stay like that for a little while. Thunder continues rumbling above them, but the storm is still holding off. Jet’s chest rattles with uneven breaths.  
She could’ve fallen asleep right there.  
Rain starts coming down softly, mostly getting trapped up in the red leaves.  
She’s brought back to reality when Jet jerks away from her, scrambling onto his knees. He retches, back arching up.  
“Oh,” she gasps.  
Vomit splatters on the ground between where Jet’s hands are planted on the ground. She kneels next to him, rubbing his back again.  
“Okay. You’re gonna be okay.”  
When he has a chance to catch his breath, she puts a hand on his forehead. Just then, there’s a cracking noise from behind them.  
“Astoria?” Smellerbee asks. Pipsqueak is with her. Are they just getting back now? “What happened to Jet?” She drops down by them. Her hands raise a bit but she’s unsure what to do with them.  
“The waterbender froze him to a tree. He must’ve gotten sick from being stuck for so long.”  
More alarming even then the vomit in front of them is that Jet isn’t saying anything for himself.  
“Keep him steady,” Astoria tells them.  
Pipsqueak holds onto Jet’s trembling shoulders. Smellerbee doesn’t get a word in before they’re being raised up. Astoria pulls the earth beneath their feet up through the trees to the platform outside Jet’s tent. She’s steady and careful but the momentum makes Jet’s head swim, and he heaves again before they’ve reached the top.  
When he’s done, Pipsqueak lifts Jet into his arms, carrying him bridal style into the tent. “He’s burning up,” he mumbles, voice thick with worry. He places their leader on his bed, bowing respectfully, and leaving when Astoria nods her thanks at him.  
Astoria sits down on the ground next to Jet, pressing the back of her knuckles against his forehead again. “Bee, can you get a pail in case he gets sick again?”  
Smellerbee nods and runs off.  
Jet groans, turning onto his side. A second later, he’s engulfed in a coughing fit, curling forward. Astoria rubs his shoulder, coaxing him through it.   
When it’s over, she catches him before he can lay back down all the way. “Not yet, Jet.”  
He whines and squeezes his eyes shut. Supporting him in a sitting position, she tugs his soaked shirt over his head, dropping it on the floor. “Are you okay if I take your pants off too? Everything is wet from the ice…” He barely nods, dropping back against the tree trunk. “Okay.”  
She gets them off and him tucked under the thin blanket before Bee returns, muttering apologies about taking too long. In one hand is an empty wooden pail and in the other is another pail filled with water and an old, bent ladle in it.  
“It’s okay,” Astoria tells her.  
Curling up again under the blanket, despite Astoria’s insistence that it would only make his stomach worse, Jet is still shivering.  
She doesn’t know when, but Astoria has her arms wrapped around herself. She only realizes it because she’s suddenly very aware of the unnatural warmth her body radiates.  
She’s about to put a hand on Jet’s arm again to help him warm up but Smellerbee stops her. “I don’t know if that’s such a good idea, Stori. His fever is really high.” She dips a cloth in the water pail, draping if over the side of Jet’s head.  
“Fever’s are good. Unless it gets way too high, it’s the body’s natural way of burning out whatever is infecting it,” Astoria rattles off. “I can help keep him warm, maybe help him burn it out faster.”  
Smellerbee still looks unsure but she can’t get a word in before Astoria is climbing into the bed beside Jet. She stays above the blanket and sits against the wall. Bee sets up a makeshift bed on the floor.  
“Why would she do that?” Smellerbee asks once Jet’s breathing has evened out more in sleep.  
“He was attacking the Avatar. She was trying to make him stop.”  
“Well… Okay. But they didn’t have to leave him like that. How long was he stuck there?”  
“It was getting dark when I found him. A few hours, at least.”  
Smellerbee’s sad eyes look at their fallen leader. “It could’ve been so much worse.”  
Astoria nods. “I thought he was going to lose a few fingers, at least. It looked like they…”  
She stops talking when Jet turns over, putting his head against Astoria’s arm. In just a few moments, his shivers slow down and then stop.

Halfway through the night, Jet’s fever skyrocketed. Astoria practically jumped off the bed, waking Smellerbee.  
“Your turn,” she tells the half-asleep girl. “His fever is up.”  
Smellerbee rubs her eyes, crawling over to the bed. “Water’s warm.”  
Astoria stands, stretching her legs. “I’ll see if he’ll drink some. Can you go get more?”  
Yawning, Smellerbee does as asked.  
Jet whines loudly as soon as Smellerbee is gone. he bunches the blanket in one white-knuckled hand. A sob escapes him.  
“Hey,” Astoria says softly, kneeling up more. Prying his hand off the blanket, she holds his hand tightly. “You’re okay, Jet. It’s gonna be okay.”  
His eyes fly open just as he lurches over the side, gagging. Astoria shoves the empty pail under his chin just in time to catch the bile that spills past his lips. Astoria pushes his hair back off his forehead with her free hand. “Okay, okay. Just get it out.”  
As soon as it’s over, Jet nearly falls right back to sleep. “No, no. Not yet, J.” Astoria lifts his head, sitting on the edge of the bed. “You have to drink some water, first. Please.”  
She holds the ladle up to his lips. A lot of it dribbles down his chin but he swallows a few times before weakly pushing her hand away.  
“Okay. You can sleep now.” She helps him lay back down gently. “You’ll feel better soon.”  
When Smellerbee returns, a pail full of fresh water in hand, Astoria is back on the floor. Her head is resting on Jet’s arm on the bed, her thumb lightly rubbing the back of the same hand. Her other hand is on top of his head, running her fingers through his sweat-drenched, knotted hair. She’s singing.  
Smellerbee can’t help but smile.  
Fierce, determined, and quite honestly terrifying warriors – ready to fight and die at any given moment. But times like these, rare as they are, remind her that first and foremost, they are loyal to each other – like siblings should be.  
Jet holds his head high and speaks with the influence and control of a war general most of the time. Most of the Freedom Fighters, including herself, usually think of him only as a leader. But he is still only 17.  
And Astoria, for all her brooding and survival senses, is only 14, just a year older than Smellerbee herself.  
Just kids.  
Orphans of war.


	4. The Disbanding

Astoria wakes to Jet moaning and pulling his hand from hers. Her eyes are still cloudy from sleep, but she can clearly see how badly Jet is sweating. Pressing the back of her hand against his forehead, she sighs in relief. His fever has finally broken.  
After hours of sitting still and sleeping in a very unconventional position, Astoria’s joints pop and she has to stretch for a good minute before she’s ready to move. She puts the half-full of water inside the empty one and grabs the other pail.  
Longshot is sitting outside the tent, his legs dangling over the edge of the platform. His bow is held lose in one hand; his head bowed forward as he doses off.  
“You don’t have to stay,” Astoria tells him.  
Longshot lifts his head slowly, eyeing the girl and the buckets silently.  
“Jet’s fever finally broke. I’m going to get more water.”  
Longshot just stands and grabs the pails from her hands, giving her a stern look.  
She glares up at him stubbornly. “I can do it. I’ll be careful.” He shakes his head twice and walks off.  
Smellerbee is awake when she reenters. She’s kneeling in Astoria’s abandoned spot, staring at him intently. “Why did you leave?” she demands. “What if something happened?”  
“His fever broke. I was going to get some water.” Jet groans and curls up more. “Longshot took over.” She can’t hide the bite in the words.  
“Hurts,” Jet groans out. His arms tighten around his middle, drawing his knees up to his chest.  
“I know,” Smellerbee whispers. “It’ll be over soon, Jet.”  
Jet’s eyes open in small slits. His vision is clearer than the last time he can remember being conscious, but the small girl is still mostly a blur of colors and abstract shapes. “Bee?” She gives a small smile. His eyes shoot over to his sister. He shakes his head and closes his eyes.  
Smellerbee frowns, hurt by his rejection. Astoria puts a hand on her shoulder. “Go see what’s taking Longshot so long.”  
“But…”  
“Bee.”  
Smellerbee stiffens at the tone. A second later, she leaves.  
“You okay?” Astoria asks.  
Jet shakes his head. One arm is over his eyes, the other hand still resting on his stomach. His fingers twitch involuntarily. “I’m sorry, Stori. I should’ve listened to you. I got what I deserved.”  
She pushes his hair off his forehead. “I wouldn’t go that far. But yes, you should have listened.”

By the next day, Jet is back on his feet, any remnants of illness washed away completely. And Astoria is back to hiding in the trees.  
Jet has barely made an appearance since recovering. He only talks with his closest Fighters – excluding Astoria.  
She listens instead to the conversations around the hideout.  
Rumors of the Freedom Fighters disbanding circle around. Soon they are overcome with talks of rebellion, fear, and abandonment.  
Three days after he’s recovered, Astoria finally gets a moment to talk to the second in command alone, away from prying eyes and ears.  
“Is it true?” Astoria asks the younger girl. “Is Jet disbanding the Freedom Fighters?”

Smellerbee looks startled but doesn’t say anything. She doesn’t need to.  
Heat flares in her veins. “How could he do that? This is most of these kids only hope, only family. How can he just abandon them?”  
Smellerbee straightens up on her bed, placing the dagger she’s been cleaning in her folded lap. “He said the Avatar and his friends really got to him. He wants to start over. This is a good thing, Stori.”  
“It’s abandonment! He’s leaving dozens of kids to fend for themselves because he screwed up!”  
Smellerbee jolts at the fiery gaze that’s turned on her.  
“You’re going with him, aren’t you? Of course you are. Who else? Longshot?” Smellerbee nods reluctantly. “You’re a bunch of cowards.”  
“Come with us!” Smellerbee pleads. “Jet will want you to come!”  
“Then why hasn’t he told me any of this?”  
Smellerbee struggles for a moment. “Because he hasn’t decided where we’re going, yet.”  
“What about when?”  
Smellerbee doesn’t answer. Her mouth hangs open a little too long and then Astoria storms out. Smellerbee makes to go after her but seeing the edges of her tent curtains smoking, she sits back down.

“Where?” Astoria demands upon barging into Jet’s room.  
“Ba Sing Se,” he answers. His back is to her.  
“Am I invited? Or are you abandoning me, too?”  
Jet turns slowly. He pauses just a second at the gold swirls in his sister’s eyes but hides his fear quickly. “That depends. Are you going to betray me again?”  
“I did not betray you. I saved an entire village from suffering in your selfish pursuit of revenge.”  
“Selfish?” Jet growls, stepping up to her. It’s meant to be intimidating with how he towers over her, but he’s mistakenly put himself in too close range to her. “Everyone here, everyone in the world, has suffered because of the Fire Nation. The less of them there are, the better off we all are. If a few civilians have to go down, too, then that’s unfortunate but sometimes we don’t have a choice. This is war, Astoria.”  
She jolts, falling back a step. He never uses her full name. Hearing it stings more than she’d even admit.  
“We are not an army, Jet,” her voice falls. “That is never what you wanted this to be.”  
He studies her for a long breath. “I know. Believe me, I know. I almost died because I couldn’t control myself. I know I was wrong; I do. And believe me, I will never make a mistake like that again. But you still chose a stranger over me. You betrayed me.”  
“Our village burned down in front of us. You almost washed one away. If you had succeeded, you would be no better than the Fire Nation.”  
Jet slams her against the tree trunk. “You don’t get to compare anything I do to those monsters. You don’t even remember what happened to our village, you only know what I told you.  
“Your people have killed thousands of civilians. A troop or two perishing in a flood doesn’t even come close to evening the score.”  
“My people?” She pushes back. Jet tenses, expecting to feel the telltale heat of her anger hit him any second. But it never comes. “They are not my people. I was born to an Earth Kingdom family, your family. I am an Earthbender.”  
“You are an abomination.”  
Gold flares brighter in her eyes but still the burn never comes. “And you are a monster, Jet.”

Freedom Fighter numbers dwindle as the days go on, not that anyone acknowledges it aloud. Jet, Smellerbee and Longshot keep a watchful eye out for Astoria. Fear plagues them every moment, the image of her gold eyes burned into their minds.  
Jet sits perched on the edge of the cliff where Sokka had eavesdropped on them before the destruction of the dam. Guilt thrums in his veins as he stares at the flooded village.  
“Jet?” Smellerbee asks quietly.  
“She’s right, Bee.” His head drops. “I am a monster.”  
Smellerbee sits next to him, one hand on his shoulder. “You were only doing what you thought was right. Just like she was. Just like you are now. Give her time. She will understand, soon.”  
“No. She won’t.” He lifts his head. “But I don’t care.”  
“Don’t say that. Jet, she’s your sister. She’s the only one you’ve always been able to count on. She has always been there when you needed her.”  
“Go make sure you and Longshot are ready. We leave at sunset.”  
“Jet…”  
The former leader stalks off silently, hands fisted at his sides.

A small bag is slung over Jet’s shoulder as he waits outside his tent. He tries hard not to squirm under her gaze or jump when she lands on the platform.  
“You’re really not even going to say goodbye?”  
“I didn’t think you’d care.”  
“Jet,” she frowns at how he tenses when she steps forward. “I did not mean to betray you. And I am sorry that it came off that way. I was trying to save you from making a huge, irreparable mistake.” She steps closer again. “I know you better than anyone, Jet. I know that you would never be able to live with yourself if you killed all those people. Hate me if you must, but you could never hate me as much as you would hate yourself for that.”  
He closes his eyes to hold back tears. She’s right, of course.  
“Come with us. We’ll wait for you to pack.”  
She smiles softly and hugs him tight. Her head falls at the center of his chest. his heartbeat is strong and soothing in her ear.  
“I can’t.”  
His hold tightens. “Please, Stori. I’m sorry, I…”  
“I can’t come yet, J.” She pulls back, holding him at an arm’s length. “I want to help some of the younger kids get somewhere safe. I will come as soon as I’m finished.”


	5. The Desert

Most of the Freedom Fighters that remain are kids – younger even than Smellerbee. Newbies who haven’t had a chance to join a group yet.  
Astoria watches sadly as they present their meager finds for food to each other. It will barely be enough for everyone to get some. Her heart breaks and she thinks of the pack of food she has stashed away. If she means to follow Jet to Ba Sing Se, she can’t afford to sacrifice her own rations.  
She jumps down near them, making them jump. They stare at her wide eyed.  
“Hello,” she greets, sitting with them. “My name is Astoria.”  
“Are … are you a Freedom Fighter?” the eldest, a girl close to her own age, asks. She sits at the center of the group, across from Astoria.  
“I was. I’m sorry to tell you but Jet and the others left last night.” They frown but it’s clear that they already knew this. “There is a refugee town not far from here. I know that you will be safe there. I can take you if you’d like.”  
They look toward the oldest. “How do you know?” she asks.  
“I took a group there not long ago. I check in now and then. They are all safe and seem happy. I promise they will take you in.” Looking around, all she’s met with is fearful, sad little faces. “You won’t have to fend for yourselves anymore.”  
“They’re really not coming back, are they?” a young boy – maybe ten – chirps up, his voice quivering.  
She shakes her head, “No, I don’t think so.”  
“What will happen to you?” another girl asks.  
Astoria smiles softly at them. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.”  
The eldest looks down in thought. “We’d like to go to the town.”

Miraculously, by the time they arrive at the town she’d taken the inhabitants of the village Jet almost flooded, the Fire Nation soldiers have abandoned it. The last time she visited, a few days before rumors of Jet’s coming departure surfaced, they had been mingling mostly peacefully among the civilians. She doesn’t care to wonder why they would just move on so quickly.  
The children are welcomed with open arms and hot food. An elderly woman takes them in, thanking Astoria profusely for watching out for them, and ushering them into her home.  
And then Astoria is on her way.  
A decade of hiding has taught Jet and Astoria well. A decade of hiding together ahs made it easy to track each other.  
“No one will see us if we travel at night,” Jet had told her a lifetime ago. His grip on her hand then had been bone crushing and comforting. When they realized they were all the other had left in the world.  
The darkness of night terrified her then and she clung to Jet with all the strength she had. He kept her safe, kept all the monsters at bay, and held on tight.  
She has no one to cling to now. But the darkness no longer terrifies her.

In the desert, traveling at night is the only realistic choice. Trying to sleep in the day does not come easy.  
Smellerbee lies awake, a piece of cloth over her head to protect from the sun and the heat. It helps a little but the light shines through it and every inch of her is damp with sweat.  
She and Longshot lay on either side of Jet, facing the older boy on their sides.  
“Jet?”  
“Bee, we have to get some rest.”  
“Do you really thinks she’ll come?” she continues anyway. They’re two days into the journey and no one has mentioned her since Jet told them she’d meet them.  
“Yes. Now sleep.”  
“But what if … something happens? She’s all alone, Jet.”  
“Astoria is the single toughest person I’ve ever met. If she does run into trouble, you should pity whoever crosses her path.”  
She sits up, eliciting a groan from Jet. “But what if she doesn’t? What if she decided to stay?”  
Jet’s on his back, his hands folded lightly over his stomach. He has a similar piece of cloth covering his face so she can’t see him, but she knows the thought has to have crossed his mind. “She’ll come.”  
The conversation ends there. Longshot lifts his cloth for a moment, giving Smellerbee a sympathetic look.  
Smellerbee stays upright, arms crossed over her knees. She stares back the way they’d come, watching the wind blow sand over their footprints. She stares and stares until Jet and Longshot’s breathing evens out.

Sleep never comes for Smellerbee. She stays awake, cloth draped over her face, staring upwards, listening to the others’ breathing.  
Near dusk, as the temperature falls to a more bearable degree, she hears shifting beside her. Mumbled words follow shortly after.  
Through the cloth, she sees Jet turn onto his side, facing her. He curls up, wrapping his arms tight around his chest. One hand claws at his shirt, gripping it tight.  
She lifts the cloth and sits up, tilting her head sideways as she watches. Longshot sleeps away in oblivion.  
“Jet?” Smellerbee whispers, scooting closer.  
“No…” Jet mumbles into his chest. “Stori … Stori … please.” To her absolute surprise, Jet’s bottom lip wobbles. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”  
He’s shaking now, slight but for someone usually so steady and stoic, it’s more than noticeable.  
“Jet,” she moves to shake him awake but stops when Longshot moves. He looks at her for a long moment then shakes his head.Longshot closes his eyes, pretending to go back to sleep. The look he gives her right before tells her she should do the same, but she can’t. She sits up, arms around her knees against her chest.  
Jet keeps mumbling and shaking but she can’t make any of what he says out anymore. His breathing becomes ragged shallow, interloped with gasps every few minutes. After helping Astoria take care of him while he was sick, she thought she’d seen all she could of Jet but this … this is something she never even thought was possible. Guilt crashes over her when a tear falls down the bridge of Jet’s nose. Whether she wakes him up of not, she should not be seeing this.  
She’s about to lay back down, picking the cloth back up, when Jet shoots upright, gasping for breath. He rubs his hands under his eyes, wiping away the tears, leaving red marks behind from the pressure. His whole body heaves and trembles. He’s not yet aware of his audience. His shoulders tense up and his face contorts in sob muffled behind the hand he clamps over his mouth.  
She’s frozen in place but wishes she could run away before he realizes she’s still watching.  
Wishing does her no good. Jet turns back to her. Instead of being angry or even embarrassed, he just looks tired. “Ready to go?”


	6. The Boat

The ferry station is packed. Children cling to their parents’ hands, to each other. A few scattered individuals stand apart from everyone else, alone. They wander through the crowds, looking lost. Astoria’s heart breaks for them and suddenly realizes she is just like them. Alone and lost.  
There’s no guarantee this is the port Jet and the others came to – or that they waited for her to arrive. She moves through the crowds for a while. Luckily, Jet is tall enough to probably tower over most of the other refugees.  
She doesn’t find Jet or anyone else she knows but someone does catch her eye. Passing through towns to get here, she saw enough Wanted posters with their faces and names to easily recognize them.  
Prince Zuko and General Iroh. It’s the scar that gives them away.  
How safe could Ba Sing Se be for them? Fire Nation exiles or not, few Earth Kingdom citizens would be inclined to sympathize or help them. Suddenly, she prays Jet is not at this station.  
Staying as far from the banished Prince, she waits and searches as long as she can, but the next ferry is leaving soon, and she doubts she made it here before the others. Either they’ll be on this ferry or they’ve already left.  
She follows not far behind the Prince and General, boarding the ferry.  
The ferry holds significantly less people than the station. There’s enough room for everyone to set up a place to sit or sleep. Bowls of sludge are passed out – a poor excuse for food even by Freedom Fighter standards. She dumps hers over the side of the boat with a grimace.  
Shaking her head, she looks across the boat, surveying the other passengers. To her surprise, she meets eyes with a familiar face a little ways away. Prince Zuko. She raises an eyebrow, but he just looks away, back at the bowl in his hand.  
“I’m tired of living like this.”  
She nods in agreement and starts to walk away when a very familiar voice – and tone – catch her attention and stops her dead in her tracks.  
“Aren’t we all?”  
Jet leans against a thin pillar, his arms crossed over his chest. Smellerbee and Longshot, just a few feet away, look back at him as he moves to introduce himself.  
“I heard the captain’s eating like a king while us refugees have to feed off his scraps,” Jet gets right to the point. “Doesn’t seem fair does it?”  
Smellerbee looks away for just a second but instantly notices Astoria while she’s trying to sneak closer. Her eyes blow wide and her face lights up. She starts to tell Jet but he’s still talking to the Prince. Longshot puts a hand on her shoulder, following her gaze. He simply nods once but neither comes over to her, sticking loyally by Jet.

Jet is passing out the food they managed to take from the captain’s quarters. Smellerbee and Longshot sit with the General and Prince.  
The smile on Jet’s face makes Astoria relax a tiny bit. It’s been a long time when he looked like he genuinely enjoyed what he was doing.  
“Maybe it’s ‘cause I’m not a man. I’m a girl!” Smellerbee yells at the General. She gets up to walk away even as the General calls after her to correct himself.  
“Oh! Now I see! It’s a beautiful name for a lovely girl!”  
Longshot follows her quickly. Grabbing her shoulder to stop her, he bends down a bit to be closer to her height. Smellerbee slumps under the look he gives her. “I know. You’re right,” Smellerbee tells him. “As long as I’m confident with who I am, it doesn’t matter what other people think.”  
Longshot smiles, as much as he ever does. It’s a small, gentle, surprising expression that Astoria has noticed is usually reserved for when he thinks he and Smellerbee are alone. A vulnerability he saves for the one person he’s most comfortable with in the world.  
“Let’s go find her,” Smellerbee says after a few moments. They turn, looking through the crowd of passengers eating on the deck. If they really think she’d just join the rest and Jet wouldn’t make a big deal out of it, at least enough to catch the other (former) Freedom Fighter’s attention, they’re crazy.  
When they don’t see her among the refugees, they turn to the door at the side. She debates hiding but they already saw her earlier. And anyway, she was invited along, right?  
Smellerbee rushes at her, throwing her arms around her neck tightly. Astoria nearly loses her balance but steadies herself, returning the hug. Smellerbee’s feet dangle over the floorboards a few inches.  
“How did you make it in time? Are you okay? Did you see anyone on the way? How long were you are the station? Why are you hiding? Have you eaten? Does Jet know?” Smellerbee barely gets a breath in between her frantic questions.  
Astoria puts her back on the deck, holding her at arm’s length. “Breathe, Bee. One at a time.”  
Smellerbee takes a deep breath and hugs her again. “Oh, my god. We were so worried. We didn’t think you’d make it.”  
The hug is gentler this time, Astoria can actually breathe through it. “I’m okay. I made it.”  
Longshot isn’t one for hugs; neither is Astoria usually, but everyone has a soft spot for Bee. He squeezes her arm instead.  
“Did you eat yet? What am I saying, of course you didn’t. Jet would’ve freaked out if he saw you. Do you want some?” Longshot is already walking away before she finishes the question.  
“C’mon.” Astoria guides them out onto the outside deck. “How long ago did you get to the station?”  
“Day before yesterday. Jet wanted to wait, give you a chance to catch up…but…”  
“It’s okay. I figured you already left when I couldn’t find you in the station.”  
Longshot returns, handing Astoria some food.  
“Why are you hiding?”  
She pauses her chewing. Why is she hiding? She could argue with herself that it’s because she knows who their new friends are and doesn’t want to interfere. But clearly none of them know so as long as she keeps it to herself and an eye out for the Fire Nation men, everything should be fine.  
“Old habits die hard,” she answers. She swallows. “How’s Jet doing?” a smile teases the corner of her lips. “He’s never been very fond of boats.” She cringes at an old memory.  
“I think he outgrew it. although, he’s been more worried about making sure everyone else has food instead of himself but that’s not new.”  
“Yeah,” she sighs. “He looks better.”  
“Are you gonna tell him you’re here? Do you want us to tell him?”  
“I will. If you guys could get him to come out here, that’d be great.” As soon as the words leave her, she realizes exactly why she’s hiding. “I think it’d be best if we weren’t in presence of prying eyes.”  
“Yeah! Yeah, of course. We’ll be right back, okay?”  
The sea breeze is a welcome reprieve after the trek through the desert and towns. It reminds her of home. Cool and open, but in a way the forest definitely wasn’t. Still, it’s comforting all the same. Pushing aside the empty bowls, she sits back against the wall behind her, stretching her legs out. Best to soak it all in before they get to the city.  
“Stori?” Her eyes, which she hadn’t totally realized she’d closed, shoot open at his wavering voice. Jet stares at her for a long moment before exhaling heavily. “Oh, thank god, Stori.”  
He collapses at her side, enveloping her in his arms tighter than Smellerbee could ever manage. She can barely breathe but doesn’t want to pull away.  
His heart hammers in his chest, she can feel it as clearly as her own against her chest. suddenly, she’s aware of Smellerbee and Longshot standing off to the side. She smiles at them as they walk away.  
“Hey, hey. I’m here,” she whispers to Jet. One hand rests on the back of his head. “I made it. We made it.”  
When he pulls away, he cups her face in large hands. His eyes are cloudy, but his smile is bigger than she’s ever seen before. “We made it,” he repeats. “Are you okay? How – How was your trip? You didn’t…”  
“It was quiet. Easy. I met some nice people along the way, they helped me.”  
He nods, letting her go. “Good. That’s good. I…” he falls back to sit, exhaling heavily, “I was so, so worried.”  
“I know. I was too. How was your trip?”  
“Long,” he laughs a little, rubbing the back of his neck. “Sleeping in the desert is not as fun as you might think.”  
“Oh? I wasn’t in the desert that long. I found a few towns and some people who were willing to let me stay the night. When I couldn’t, I just found a big branch.” He tilts his head, frowning. “No, it … it’s okay. I liked it, honestly. It felt…” she cuts herself off quickly, but her point is already across.  
“Why didn’t you find me?” Jet’s voice shakes again.  
“I couldn’t find you until we already left. I figured you guys were on another ferry.”  
“Okay, but what about after? I’m … I’m not mad anymore, Stori.”  
“I know. I know.” She looks away, out at the water. “I don’t think it’s about you. I’m not so used to crowds. Bargaining my way into a bed for a night is one thing but trying to fit in with this many people is apparently out of my comfort zone.”  
His head falls. Astoria’s spent most of her life hidden away, out of sight and away from pretty much everyone except Jet. He sits next to her. She can’t help but notice that he is pointedly not looking at the water.  
“You and boats still at war?”  
“Not exactly. But we’re far from friends.”  
Shaking her head, she sits up more, crossing her legs. “Ok. Enough about that.” Her eyebrows raise. “I see you made a new friend.”  
He nods, “Yeah. Li. He’s cool. I think he’s like us, you know. I think his uncle is all he has.”  
Well, he’s not technically wrong. “I saw what you guys did. Good work. I haven’t seen you that … happy in a long time.”  
He looks down quickly, but she catches the flush across his cheeks. “It felt good. I was really doing something good, helping people.”  
She wants to tell him that’s what he’s always done but that’s not exactly true.  
“I think this is really going to be good for us, Stori.”  
“Ba Sing Se? Or Li?”  
His head shoots up, his cheeks bright red. “Wh-What? I…”  
“I have eyes, Jet. Hell, even the blind would know. I saw the way you looked at him.”  
“We’re trying to start fresh. We can’t … we don’t have time to…”  
“Jet,” she leans forward, putting a hand on his bent knee. “We are starting fresh. What better way to do that than make some new friends? Or maybe something more?”  
He clears his throat, “Do you think he’d … be interested?”  
“How many people do you know that would agree to rob the captain of the boat that is probably their only hope left with a stranger after a single conversation? He’s already interested, Jet.”

The former Freedom Fighters set up their sleeping arrangements a little bit apart from the rest. Astoria is closest to the exit and furthest from anyone else. Jet lays next to her, on his side, facing her. Smellerbee is between him and Longshot. Astoria is still awake long after the others, staring up at the ceiling.  
Footsteps, quiet and fast, pass by her feet. He looks at her briefly before heading out the door.  
As quietly as possible, she follows him.  
“Hey.” He doesn’t jump or even flinch at her voice.  
“Hello.” His arms rest on the railing, he’s bent over slightly.  
“Not used to the sea?”  
“Just the opposite. It’s like an old friend.”  
“Huh. Didn’t think a Firebender would be so fond of water.”  
Instantly, he turns to her, panicked. “What?”  
She nods at his scar. “It’s not hard to figure out. Anyone who’s been in any Earth Kingdom town before the ferry station knows who you and your uncle are.”  
“We aren’t going to cause any trouble,” he keeps his voice steady, but his hand grips the railing with white knuckles. “We’re just like the rest of you. Looking for salvation.”  
She crosses her arms over her chest, stepping closer. “Okay. I believe you. I’m just not sure you’re going to find it in Ba Sing Se.”  
Zuko turns away from her. The way his shoulders slump is clear indication of how exhausted he is. “We don’t have any other options. Even if we do get caught, whatever happens to us in Ba Sing Se is better than what would happen in the Fire Nation.”  
“Well,” she relaxes her stance, leaning over the railing as he had been, “be careful. I doubt the other refugees will be as … accepting as I am.”  
Suddenly, she’s hit with a desperate desire to tell someone. Zuko is the closest person in the world to her situation.  
“Then again, not everyone here has the same insight as I do.”  
He turns to her, his eyebrow raised. When she looks back, anything he was going to say dies on his tongue. Her eyes are strange.  
Another, heavier set of footsteps comes up behind him. She leaves his gaze and smiles. “Hello.”  
Iroh sidles up to his nephew. His hands are together in front of him. “Good evening, Miss. Or night, I suppose,” he smiles at the dark sky above the water. “I see you’ve met my nephew, Li. I am Mushi.”  
She looks at Zuko, cocking her head to the side. “Astoria. Li is a very nice young man.”  
Iroh looks proudly at Zuko. the muscle in Zuko’s jaw flexes as he clenches his teeth.  
“We should meet again when we got to Ba Sing Se,” Astoria says.  
“Yes, we…” Iroh trails off. His face falls and for a few beats, no one says anything and he just stares at the gold swirling in her emerald eyes. “I’m sorry. You have very … unique eyes.”  
“Thank you. Well, I should be getting back before my brother notices I’m missing. I hope to see you again in the city.”  
Astoria walks off, leaving the pair in silence.  
“What was that, Uncle?” Zuko asks when she’s gone.  
“Did you see her eyes?”  
“Uncle,” Zuko says through gritted teeth, voice dropping low, “she knows. She knows who we are.”  
Iroh snaps out of it. “She was with that boy and his friends.” He shakes his head quickly. “You have to be careful, Prince Zuko.”  
“She said she wouldn’t tell anyone. And if she is willing to keep quiet, maybe Jet will, too.”  
“Let’s hope so.” Iroh goes back to staring where Astoria disappeared. “There's something about those eyes, though."


	7. The Boat: Day 2

The next morning, just as the sun is beginning to rise through dense clouds, breakfast is served. It barely looks edible but smells good enough to pass. Smellerbee, Longshot, and Astoria dig in while Jet looks at it skeptically.  
Smellerbee looks up from her bowl at him, “Aren’t you gonna eat any, Jet?”  
He watches her wipe her lips after speaking and swallows. “Not hungry.”  
Astoria, sitting next to him, leans against her brother, propping herself up with an arm behind them. He takes the hint and leans into her more, turning away from the food slightly.  
The clouds rove over the ship, wind knocking waves against the sides. Jet groans lowly beside her, low enough that their companions don’t notice.  
“I need some air,” Jet mumbles, standing. Astoria just watches him walk away before turning back to her food.

Fog is settling over the water quickly. The mountains around them are barely more than just dark shapes on the other side of the water. Laying his arms on the rail, Jet bends over, pressing his head into his folded arms. Clenching his teeth to bite back a gag, Jet curses himself. There shouldn’t be much left in his stomach from the night before – not that he ate much. Li and Mushi didn’t catch on to the fact that he only really held the same piece of bread the whole time because he kept up well with the conversation. And after discovering Astoria, eating was the last thing on his mind.  
He feels every jolt of the boat, every crashing wave against the side, like he’s being thrown around in the sea himself.  
Footsteps make him stand up straight.  
Li stands on the other end of the deck, staring out at the water. Unlike Jet, he’s steady and calm.  
Jet swallows thickly, ruffling his hair a little. Steeling his nerves, he goes over to the other teen.  
“You know, as soon as I saw your scar, I knew exactly who you are,” Jet says. Li’s shoulder’s tense the slightest bit. “You’re an outcast,” he moves to stand next to Li, looking pointedly at the fuzzy mountains in the distance, “like me. And us outcasts have to stick together. We have to watch each other’s backs. Because no one else will.”  
Looking at Li is immediately a bad choice. Jet looks down at the floorboards quickly.  
“I’ve realized lately that being on your own isn’t always the best path,” Li says, surprising Jet after a long moment.  
Jet doesn’t get a chance to respond. A particularly harsh wave hits the boat. Li stumbles a bit, knocking into Jet. Jet falls against the rail, gripping it so tight his knuckles ache.  
“Sorry. Are … you okay?” Li asks when Jet doesn’t straighten back up. He’s facing the water, but his eyes are squeezed shut.  
Jet only gives a minute shake of his head. Clearing his throat, Zuko scratches the back of his neck nervously.  
“Sorry, sorry,” Jet rattles out quickly. “Boats aren’t my favorite things in the world.”  
“It’s okay.” Zuko sidles up next to Jet, one hand on the rail by Jet’s. Hesitating, hovering for a second, he gently places the other hand on Jet’s back. “Focus on your breathing. In through your nose, out through your mouth. Slow and deep. Try to make sure it reaches the bottom of your lungs before you breathe out.”  
He might consider the open waters like a friend now, but their relationship did not start out that way. Many a time, Zuko found himself in a similar position with Iroh at his side.  
Jet does as he’s told. He fold his arms again, still gripping the railing with all he has.  
“If that doesn’t work,” Zuko says when the green tint doesn’t leave Jet’s cheeks and he still refuses to open his eyes, “it’s okay if you … have to … you know. It might even make you feel better.”  
Jet stiffens under Zuko’s steady hand. Until now, it’s been a still pressure on the middle of his back, but when he leans forward more, standing up a little more to put his head over the water, Zuko starts moving it in small circles around the center of his spine.  
Maybe it’s just the way the mismatched clothes fit him, but Zuko hadn’t expected Jet to be this thin. He can feel every ridge in the boy’s spine perfectly, barely concealed under muscle.  
Jet abruptly retches. Little more than stringy stomach acid falls from his lips. It sounds like it hurts. Zuko stays quiet, still rubbing his arching back. Letting go of the railing, Zuko brushes Jet’s hair off his forehead, holding his head steady.

Astoria instantly recognized the look on Jet’s face as he walked away but decided to give him some privacy. When they had finished eating and he still hadn’t returned, her worry increased, and she ventured out onto the deck. It was pretty much vacant, everyone decided to stay under the roof cover in case the clouds broke. A few guards and stragglers are all she sees. Until she hears the unmistakable and unfortunately familiar sound of her brother being sick.  
Rushing off toward the noise, she comes to a screeching halt.  
Jet is indeed being sick, but he is not alone.  
The banished prince stands at his side, one hand on his back, the other supporting his head and keeping him from possibly falling overboard. This far away she can’t hear anything being said until Jet tries to stand back up.  
“Fuck, fuck. I’m … I’m so sorry,” Jet says when it’s over – nothing substantial came up – panting and hastily wiping his lips.  
“It’s okay,” Zuko assures him. “Take your time. Don’t try to rush it or you’ll be sick again.”  
Well, must be safe to assume Jet has no idea who his new friend is. No way he would ever let an enemy see him in this state. Hell, he practically shoved Smellerbee out of his room when he was sick back at the hideout. Zuko/Li must really be special.  
“Sit.” Zuko turns Jet around, keeping one hand on him at all times. “It will help ground you.” With Zuko’s help, he lowers to the ground, his back against the rail posts. “I’m going to see if I can get you some water, okay?” He doesn’t wait for a reply.  
As Zuko walks away, Jet draws his knees up to his chest and bows his head between them.  
He’s carefully measuring his breaths when Astoria walks up next to him. She puts a hand on his shoulder, kneeling down. “Hey, you okay?”  
One corner of his mouth tilts up. “Nothing I haven’t dealt with before. I’ll be fine.”  
“I meant about … Li.” Jet doesn’t seem to notice the pause before she says the other boy’s name.  
“Embarrassed but what can you do?”  
His eyes squeeze shut again. Astoria runs her hand along the curve of his back lightly.  
“You gotta get out of here. Before … before he sees you.”  
In a flash, her hand is gone and she’s on her feet. Without a second glance or a word from either, she disappears.  
Zuko comes around the corner a second later, a cup of water in hand. “Here you go.”  
Jet takes the cup with two shaking hands. Zuko sits on his right, awkwardly looking at his own hands. The water is clean and cool, soothing on Jet’s throat. He drinks it all in just a few minutes.  
“Thank you.” Another apology sticks on Jet’s tongue, but he bites it back.  
“You’re welcome.”


End file.
